Murdoch: Ruling makes me 'worry'

Rupert Murdoch says he is “surprised” by the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the individual mandate of President Barack Obama’s health care law, and that he feels a sense of “worry” about what the ruling could mean politically.

“Following the Supreme Court hearings, I’m a little surprised, but it’s clearly — it will be seen as a big victory for the president,” the News Corp. chairman and CEO said Thursday on Fox News, moments after the highly anticipated decision was read. “They’ll all be doing high-fives at the moment at the White House. But on the other hand, every poll showed it’s not a popular bill, so we’re going to the election and fight it there, I imagine.”

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Asked whether he worries that the decision will be costly for businesses across the country, Murdoch said he’s concerned that it will worsen the country’s budget woes.

“I don’t think it will affect our business very much, but certainly I think it’s been shown that it’s going to add tremendously to the national budget,” he said. “I just worry about this entitlement culture. We’ve seen where it’s taken Greece, we’ve see where it’s taking France and Spain today. So on a political level I worry about it, but of course I’m for all health services being available and possible.”

The high court ruled Thursday that Congress did not overstep its power by requiring almost all Americans to buy health insurance, and that it has the authority to impose the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate using its taxing power.

Fox News is owned by Fox Entertainment Group, which is a subsidiary of News Corp. Fox, along with CNN, initially reported that the individual mandate had been struck down.